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Monday, April 28, 2014

House build students nail down the task of siding their house.

Blog for 3/31 – 4/5 & 4/7 – 4/11

By: Drecar Del Castillo

During this
short week the class worked on siding. After the siding’s first coat of paint
and finishing the final touches of pink foam, the class prepared for the
installation of siding during testing week. For the few days we were there for
house build, the class learned what siding is and its purpose, the tools we
would be using to install and cut the siding, and how to safely handle the
materials.

Now siding is
the last piece of overlayment that goes on the outside of the house. Its
purpose is to not only give an aesthetically pleasing look to the house, but to
add another layer of protection from wind-driven rain. When installed, the
siding is installed from the bottom up. The next piece of siding only covers
1-1/4” of the top of the piece underneath, leaving a 6” reveal. To make sure
that the reveal is consistent throughout the runs of siding, we used a gauge
tool specifically designed for installing siding.

The gauges can
each be adjusted to set a different measurement on the reveal. We also used a
nail gun to install the siding because if were to hand nail it, the siding
would likely shatter. With a nail gun we can set the pressure at which the nail
is driven into the siding so that the heads aren’t sunken in all the way. We
then finish sinking the nails in with a hammer. To cut the pieces of siding we
use a large shear. We could also use a pair of electric siding shears, but this
process leaves a rough cut and produces a dust that can be hazardous when
breathed in. So to help prevent us from breathing in the dust, we use N95 face
masks.

So far we have
completed half of the back of the house and side entrance wall.